Nasty great post. I hope to be in the family in the near future. I watch this thread daily and I apologize on the other thread build because I get them confused, but I've learned a ton. A day closer to the interior and engines, can't wait.

no way you learned anything from me...im slow, road the short bus when I didnt' skip school and to top it off both my personalities IQ combined is only 75

nasty hope you get out on the water before summer is gone!!!

Dale get your ass out to Rons in 2 weeks

It's at Rons every year. I posted a thread in this section and not one reply. Why don't more of you come?

Steve, if the DCB with 400s' ran 108 mph without setup and props your Skater is going to roll. I along with this whole cast of characters thank you for letting us live vicariously through you and your build. For someone with no cat experience you are in for the time of your life!!! I would pay good money to watch the expression on your face as you get some seat time. The main reason I have a cat is the feeling of satisfaction pushing the hull to its limits. A feeling that hasn't got old yet. No comparison to a Vee hull. Some play tennis some play golf. I like to fly and I hope you will to.

Hey Bob, Thanx a lot. I have become friends with the person who owns the DCB. It has run a best of 112mph at least. I think he said it may have touched 113mph and still working on set up. Says the motors run awesome. Runs to 105 real strong before showing any signs of slowing. Its extremely hot out where he is by Havasu so it has backed off a hair but can still get 110mph plus. I can't wait for my rig to get done. Working on side panels now and motors are supposed to be at Mercury by end of July. I have been in cats a number of times but never drove one. Its going to be awesome to have one of my own at my disposal in my backyard on a lift to use whenever I feel the urge. Steve.

If you follow the offshore races the outboard DWs' will run 115 to 117 with 560 hp. During a race the outboard stock class seldom exceeds 90 mph in the rough. I have been fortunate to test a DW to 117 and a friends 36 I/O Skater to 150+ mph. Your cat should be able to eat up 3' slop at 90 and I think/hope you will be impressed with it's capabilities. I have run the 36 in 3's with an occasional 5' at 90 to 120 from Miami to Gilberts and it was a blast. I don't care about going 150 on flat water. It's just boring. When the girls are up and mixing jack and cokes at 120 I'm bored.
You need power to get yourself out of trouble in a cat. You should be able to run 90 at 3/4 throttle with the last 1/4 to help settle the cat if it gets out of sorts. It's going to be a great rough water weapon. Hang in there brother. It will definately be worth the wait!!!!!!

Steve, As you are anxiously awaiting your boat remember one thing. Numbers are numbers and everyone has them regarding the MPH boats run, claim etc. Do not let what everyone else runs lead to your expectations for your boat. Some are untrue, some are a one time run under ideal conditions, and some are realistic. There are a ton of things that will contribute to how much HP the motors make. Personally for me I am a realist and only believe what I see or have run up against. Like they say, the stops when the green flag pops! If I had a dollar for every boat I out ran over the years that was supposedly faster than mine I would a 50' Skater by now.
Try to weed through it all and look at the facts like Dales run with a video to support it. I am not disputing what that boat ran but if DCB/Mercury wanted to showcase that boat they would have ran it for the time trials out there to show the doubters what it can do. JMO.
I believe the reason Mercury wants to test your boat is to see first hand how the motors perform as they have a lot riding on the outboard cat thing which is a good thing.
The best part for you is it is going to be a lot fun. You can spend countless hours working on set up to get the most out of it. My advice is be sure to start a log book and document everything including temp, humidity, fuel load, wind conditions etc. Otherwise it becomes a blur! These boats are very sensitive to minor changes. Some things work and some don't.


Would love to see you bring it down this winter for the Miami Boat Show Poker run to get out of the Winter up there!.
We all feel your pain in waiting!!!!! It has got to happen sooner or later!!!!
Best

Bob is right. My 308 is a beast in the rough. We hit it hard at LOTO last year and again at GLOC this year. The new CG made the boat run even better in the rough. I can only imagine how much better yours will be with an extra 12"s of beam. I agree flat water is boring and that's when stuff blows up. I much prefer air time to WOT. I think the biggest challenge will be CG for your hull. It will be interesting to see how it all pans out!

Steve, If I was you I would take Sam up on his offer and have him come up and give you some first person instruction on running your cat as he has decades of experience racing and rigging. His knowledge is priceless. I spent the best part of two years getting comfortable running my cat on the edge, stuffing sponsons and looking at the sky way to often. It's a high no drug can match.CG and flying level is everything and definately use VERY LITTLE if any positive trim. As Sam stated above you may have to move some things like batteries around to get her to fly level. It will all be worth the effort when you can come home and stroll down to the dock and go get your fix any time.